


Madonna

by shadowsong26, TigerKat



Series: Serenissima [3]
Category: Battlestar Galactica (2003)
Genre: AU, Arranged Marriage, Baroque Venice AU, Total AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-29
Updated: 2015-08-29
Packaged: 2018-04-17 18:59:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4677716
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shadowsong26/pseuds/shadowsong26, https://archiveofourown.org/users/TigerKat/pseuds/TigerKat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>William Adama and Laura Roslin meet officially for the first time, shortly after their engagement.</p>
<p>[Arc 1]</p>
            </blockquote>





	Madonna

Bill is a little surprised to realize that he's seen his bride-to-be before.

Not that he should be. He's been about enough in society to know _of_ her, particularly in his younger days, and of course they must have, at some point, attended the same functions. But he's surprised at how long it's been. The last time he saw her, it was years and years ago-- Zak was just a baby, Lee barely more, and he supposes her husband had just died, because she was in black, and looked tired. Her son must have been an infant, even younger than Zak. 

They were all so young then. He wonders if she remembers him. 

Probably not. There's nothing but suspicion in her eyes. 

And why should there be anything else? This is their first real meeting, and it is three days before their wedding. Why should she look at him with anything more than suspicion? 

He bows over her hand to hide the ridiculous disappointment. 

\-- 

Laura doesn't really know what to think of all this. 

She invites her guest-- guest, ha, as if she had any choice in this-- to sit, and takes her time about sitting herself, spreading her skirts with great concentration while she sorts out her feelings. 

Her immediate and obvious response is disgust; at a doge so weak he needs to steal her independence to shore up his own power, at a man who will let his father dictate his entire life, at this entire situation. Since actually meeting Commander Adama, though, she's had to revise that opinion, at least in regards to him. Whatever reason he has for marrying her-- and he does have one, she's sure of it-- it is his own. 

She steals a look at him from under her lashes, wondering. What does he want with her? Is it her son? She hopes not. Billy she will _not_ give up; she'll tear the world apart to save her son any harm at all. 

But then, this Commander Adama is a father. That's part of why they have to marry, after all. Perhaps he'll understand that. 

She hopes he will. She hopes he doesn't want more from her than she can give. 

In spite of everything, she almost wants to like him. 

\-- 

This is a spectacularly bad idea. Although really, Billy could have told the Doge that five days ago when he'd first heard about it. Donna Laura Roslin does not respond well to coercion. 

This time, she apparently responded well enough to agree. Billy has a horrible sick feeling that the Doge's "persuasive" tactics centered on him, but he has no idea how to bring it up with his mother, and he's fairly sure that she won't ever tell him why she agreed to this. Besides, it feels more than a little bit narcissistic to assume that everything his mother does revolves around him-- it doesn't, especially now that he's an adult, and for all he knows the Doge threatened her personally. 

Billy doesn't trust the Doge at all. 

He isn't sure how he feels about Commander Adama, either. The man strongly resembles his father, with whom Billy is not best pleased just at the moment, and of course he's stolen Billy's name, relative birth years notwithstanding. He does, however, seem to be extremely embarrassed about this whole business, and he's treating Billy's mother with a sort of delicate, concerned respect that is a little bit hilarious but at the same time rather sweet. Billy he's ignoring, as he should-- they'll have very little to do with one another, in the end. 

Billy decides, eventually, to reserve judgment. If Commander Adama treats his mother well, he'll probably end up liking the man. If he doesn't... 

Well. 

If he doesn't, then Billy will guard his mother's back. That's all she's ever needed from him. 

She has her own ways of solving problems.


End file.
